Last weekend, Jim Boylen's Bulls had to deal with a 56-point loss. This weekend, those Bulls snapped San Antonio's home win streak.

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Michael C. Wright ESPN Staff Writer

Here's Pop on San Antonio blowing lead in loss to Bulls.

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Aldridge swats Dunn's shot into the crowd (0:23)

Aldridge's 21 in first half has Spurs up big (1:14)

Michael C. Wright ESPN Staff Writer

Jim Boylen on his conversations with Pop: "We've talked a lot about family, and we've talked a lot about leadership; just what the NBA is. Obviously, he's got great experience. He was in a situation 20 something years ago where he took over a team. So we talked last night, and we've talked a couple times. He chewed me out for my voicemail being full. So I've got to take that from him. He's just a great mentor. You know what he is? For me now, he's a friend, too. When you work for him, he's your boss, and he's your leader. Now, he's a friend and a guy I can talk to."

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Michael C. Wright ESPN Staff Writer

Spurs coach Gregg Popovich started off joking when asked how they've improved so much recently on defense, before finishing his answer with a more serious response: “I've asked very politely that they pay a little bit more attention to defense, and when they go home in the afternoons to just think about it a little bit; try to understand that if they could do that, I'd be so much happier. And one of their goals in life should be to make me happy, and lo and behold, they're playing better defense. You can't practice much as we all know the way you'd like to practice, competitively. Because with the schedules, you just can't. So we're taking every opportunity that we can to either, on film or at shootarounds. Over the last 5,6,8, 10 years, I've really limited shootarounds because I had a pretty experienced team, and it's just another appearance that they have to go through mentally, which I don't think makes them better for that night. So this season, we're back to shootarounds, and spending a lot of time going over the basics, mostly defense, so that we can form some habits and get some muscle memory going.”

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Michael C. Wright ESPN Staff Writer

Gregg Popovich took over the Spurs under somewhat similar circumstances as Jim Boylen in Chicago. Popovich said the biggest challenge of enduring a rough season in a new situation is establishing the foundation for the future: “I think the main thing is to establish what you want to carry over for the following year. Obviously, you can't do everything [because] everybody is not there. But you do what you can to establish standards, and the basics of what you think the building blocks will be for offense and defense for that group. And then you go with it. You go win, and you go lose.”

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Michael C. Wright ESPN Staff Writer

Spurs coach Gregg Popovich was asked whether he's provided any counsel to former Spurs assistant and new Bulls coach Jim Boylen: “We have spoken, but I don't counsel him. He doesn't need my counsel. He's been coaching a long time, and he knows what it takes to win, and he knows how to put a program together. It's always tough to take over a program without a training camp, and do everything you want to do. But he's a pretty straightforward, honest individual. And he'll do it the way he thinks is best for that group. He'll be fair, he'll be demanding, and he'll try to make everything clear so that whatever system he wants to employ will get across. I've learned as much from him as he's learned from us here. So my counsel is not necessary.”